Kodak Licenses OLED Technology to Fuji Electric Holdings

May 24th, 2005

Eastman Kodak Company said that Fuji Electric Holdings Co., Ltd. of Japan (Fuji) is a licensee of Kodak’s organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology, and is applying its license toward development of its own color conversion matrix (CCM) full-color OLED display technology with the intention of offering flat panel passive matrix (PM) displays.

Based in Tokyo, Japan, Fuji Electric Holdings is comprised of four operating divisions: Fuji Electric Systems, Fuji Electric FA Components & Systems, Fuji Electric Device Technology and Fuji Electric Retail Systems. The company is focused on the development of high performance components, products, systems and services in the industrial, automation and information device fields.

Fuji Electric’s CCM technology uses a production technique the company calls the “metal mask-less organic film deposition method,” for dramatic improvement in manufacturing yield rate, and greater reliability in superior full-color PM displays.

The license illustrates the versatility of Kodak’s OLED technology, as Fuji Electric joins the ranks of more than 15 other OLED licensees. Fuji Electric’s research and development company, Fuji Electric Advanced Technology Co., Ltd., also obtained the technology to increase both luminous efficiency and longer lifetime in CCM displays.

“This innovative use of Kodak display technology underscores its relevance to a wide range of applic ations,” said Mary Jane Hellyar, president, Display and Components Group and senior vice president, Eastman Kodak Company. “We’re very pleased that Fuji Electric has chosen our technology as a foundation for its portfolio of products.”

The royalty-bearing license to Fuji Electric covers use of passive-matrix OLED modules in a variety of flat panel display applications and includes a cross-license under Fuji Electric’s own considerable patent portfolio in the OLED technology field. The agreement also gives Fuji Electric the opportunity to purchase Kodak’s patented OLED materials for use in manufacturing displays.

Organic solid-state displays offer bright, sharp images that are viewable from almost any angle. OLED displays comprise thin films of organic materials that emit light when stimulated with an electrical charge. Unlike conventional liquid crystal displays, OLED displays do not require a backlight. Benefits over conventional technologies include extended color gamut, higher contrast, wider viewing angle for superb readability in most lighting conditions, faster response time to support crisp streaming video, and thinner design for better ergonomics. These benefits provide direct advantages for a variety of applications such as digital cameras, portable media players, mobile phones, PDAs and other devices.

Pioneered by Kodak in the late 1980s, OLED technology and its practical applications have generated more than 150 Kodak patents. Besides Fuji Electric, Kodak OLED licensees number more than 15, several of whom are engaged in mass production of passive matrix OLED displays.